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I have no problem with Line being put on the P.S. if he clears waivers, which he should, since over half of the league probably doesn't even use a FB.

That's where he belongs for a year, at least. He's not deserving of a spot now.

I completely agree on the highlighted portion - I don't think he brings enough to the table to be a consistent blocker on the NFL level at this time, and while he has some interesting ability as a runner and receiver, blocking is the #1 ability the Vikings would need from him at his position. I like his potential, but as you noted, FB isn't a position where there's a ton of job openings; teams don't typically snatch up multiple FBs and let them develop, usually its just one "pure" guy at most, and then maybe another H-Back/TE hybrid guy (which the Vikings have in Ellison). Line definitely had some "flashes" in the preseason, but I'm not sure it was enough for another team to claim him to their 53-man roster after being put on waivers... I think he'd make it onto the Vikings practice squad because of this.

And ultimately, I think that's a good thing. Give him a year of NFL coaching and training, and see what he can do as a FB next year. He might never be the inline sledgehammer that Felton is, but he may be able to improve his blocking enough to where its more than serviceable, and his skills with ball is an added benefit._________________

DJC71 wrote:

That's like asking if I'd still buy my ex-wife flowers on our anniversary after she left me for another dude. Heck no. I hope she gets bedbugs.

His audition began months earlier, at the May rookie minicamp, where there were the nine draft picks and everybody else. Line was in the “everybody else” group. But Vikings general manager Rick Spielman had very much wanted Line on his roster. If the team hadn’t re-signed Pro Bowl fullback Jerome Felton this offseason, Spielman said, it may have drafted Line with a late-round pick; even with Felton back, Spielman felt strongly about bringing in Line to learn the fullback position, and he gave him the largest signing bonus of the team’s undrafted rookies.

I could see Line being viewed as a potential replacement for Toby Gerhart next year. Line probably wont be a true FB, but he is built like Gerhart. hopefully Line can develop the pass blocking skills to be a third down back as well._________________

Zach Line stood out to Spielman in the rookie minicamp for his athleticism and pass-catching abilities. Once the team completed its first week of padded practices in training camp, even though Line still needed much work on his technique, Spielman recognized the “want to” mentality that’s necessary to succeed as a lead blocker.

I agree. If Line shows he can lead block and play special teams, I think Asiata could end up being released. Line has more upside, and if Line can show he can play FB and special teams in these three games, it really doesnt make sense to keep Asiata and Line. They are essentially the same player._________________

I agree. If Line shows he can lead block and play special teams, I think Asiata could end up being released. Line has more upside, and if Line can show he can play FB and special teams in these three games, it really doesnt make sense to keep Asiata and Line. They are essentially the same player.

Well, neither got cut...

The Vikings moved undrafted rookie fullback Zach Line to injured reserve. Coach Leslie Frazier didn't mention Line in his rundown of injuries today, but whatever is, um, ailing Line was well timed (wink, wink) in that it clears a roster spot for Pro Bowl fullback Jerome Felton to return from his three-game suspension for violating the league's policy of substances of abuse.

Unbeknownst to Line when he left Southern Methodist University, there was a hidden injury that he overcame during his foray into the NFL as an undrafted rookie, which The MMQB began chronicling in July. Every step that Line took, from pulling a two-and-a-half ton Dodge Ram pick-up truck in summer workouts, to his 61-yard touchdown on his first NFL touch in a preseason game, to earning a spot on the 53-man roster, to replacing a Pro Bowl fullback for the first three games of the regular season, was achieved in spite of a 270-degree labrum tear in his left shoulder.

Line’s shoulder injury, as crazy as it sounds to those of us who have never played a down in the NFL, didn’t factor into his rookie season being cut short. He tweaked his knee against the Browns in Week 3—an MCL injury that didn’t require surgery—and moving Line to IR was a convenient way for the Vikings to clear a roster spot for Pro Bowl fullback Jerome Felton, who was coming back the next day from a three-game league suspension. Once Line was shut down for the season, his agent suggested it might be a good time to take care of the nagging shoulder that had bothered him since he was chasing Eric Dickerson’s SMU rushing records.

But Line had no idea the tear in his labrum was so severe. He first learned of the injury through the medical screening at February’s NFL Combine, when he was suddenly announced to team medical staffs as, “Zach Line, posterior labral tear.” But what was he supposed to do at that point? His only hope of making an NFL roster was to play through a pain that was sometimes overwhelming, a deep ache that seized his arm for at least 30 seconds if he was hit the wrong way. In his new position, the fullback was very often hit the wrong way.

Line had shoulder surgery in Minneapolis five weeks after he was moved to IR, and the orthopedic surgeon found the damage to be more extensive than the MRI had indicated. Line’s tear wasn’t just posterior; it wrapped around three-fourths of the shoulder socket. The surges of pain Line felt were the top of his arm bone sliding in and out of the socket.